


Brighton Beach

by gillyAnne



Series: The Lioness, the Leopard and the Wardrobe [4]
Category: The Fall (TV 2013), The X-Files
Genre: F/F, beach
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-26
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-07-20 06:41:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19987792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gillyAnne/pseuds/gillyAnne
Summary: Just a short sweet story, written on a hot day, yearning for the cool sea but having no escape but to write it.Written with @nicole_nsg92 in mind - I hope this can slightly improve your mood, even just a little.It will probably have more chapters in the future.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short sweet story, written on a hot day, yearning for the cool sea but having no escape but to write it.  
> Written with @nicole_nsg92 in mind - I hope this can slightly improve your mood, even just a little.   
> It will probably have more chapters in the future.

‘Have you ever been to Brighton during summer?’ Stella asked. Scully’s eyes widened. ‘No, that’s a great idea. You took me there once and I loved it, but it was freezing.’ ‘I remember,’ Stella said with a smile.

They’d been sitting in the shade on the terrace of Stella’s house, contemplating what to do in this heat. Scully was over from the States for a few days and since they’d grossly underestimated the expected heat wave that had hit a few days ago they’d been thinking of ways to cool off. Stella knew the beach town would be cooler, but crowded, and she knew the pier would be full of life. She wouldn’t want to go by herself but with Dana she really wanted to spend the day there.

‘Did you bring swimwear?’ Stella asked. ‘If not you can borrow mine, I have loads.’ Scully pushed herself up and sighed at how that minimal effort caused a sweat to break out across her forehead. ‘I brought a bikini, yes,’ she confirmed and Stella nodded. ‘Good, let’s get changed and head off.’

A quick outfit change later Stella found Dana in her kitchen quickly filling some bottles with water and collecting a few snacks. ‘You know we can just buy that there,’ Stella smiled at her, pulling her in for a quick kiss. Scully kissed her back, defiantly stuck out her chin and took the bottles anyway, stuffing the snacks in her tote bag. Stella smirked and opened the door for her, heading out to her car. They took only the essentials, a few bath towels, slippers, sunscreen and Scully borrowed a hat from Stella. Stella smiled when Dana tried it on, and instantly told her to keep it – it looked infinitely better and cuter on her.

The drive took about two hours and soon they were in the streets of Brighton, surrounded by traffic and people. Stella found a spot to park a lot closer to the beach than Scully had anticipated and as soon as she stepped out of the car the freshness in the air filled her lungs as she inhaled deeply. ‘Oh yes,’ she exhaled, ‘That feels wonderful.’ ‘I just smell sea,’ Stella commented, but she couldn’t help but be affected by Dana’s good mood. Her flowy maxi dress caught the wind and she instantly knew it was a good call to come here – She felt at home here, wanted to share that with Dana and they would get some sun time but most of all the heat was bearable and the wind even slightly cool. ‘That’s better already,’ she said to nothing in particular as she collected her bag from the boot. Scully put on her sunglasses and put her arm across her forehead to create shade so she could watch out across the boardwalk. ‘Let’s get down to the water,’ she suggested, aching to cool off in the British seas. ‘Easy,’ Stella chuckled, ‘Don’t you want to see the pier first?’ The last time they’d come here the pier had been closed. ‘Nope,’ Scully confirmed. ‘Later, but right now I just want to get in the water and cool down.’ Stella sighed. ‘Can’t argue with that. Okay, that way,’ she indicated with her head. Scully took a bag from her and quickly started to walk towards the water, her red wrap dress waving and flowing around her body. Stella watched her and felt her heart tingle at Dana’s happiness and she shook her head in slight disbelief. ‘Stel?’ Dana called back to her, a questioning look on her face. ‘Yeah, coming,’ Stella replied, quickly shaking off her reverie and following Dana down to the pebbled beach.

They found a spot half in the shade cast by the pier, half covered by the shadow of someone else’s obscenely large parasol because Dana objected to being in the full sun. Stella quietly agreed, knowing she shouldn’t be sunbathing, and happy to accommodate Dana’s incredibly fair complexion. As soon as they had their towels laid out Stella sat down and got her sunglasses out. ‘Are you not going in?’ Scully asked, slightly disappointed. ‘I’m going to watch you first,’ Stella replied coolly, and watched amused how Scully blushed a little. ‘Okay,’ she said, untying the knot in her dress to allow it to fall open. ‘Help me with this first?’ She held the spray bottle of sunscreen up and reached it towards Stella. ‘It’s a spray,’ Stella observed, ‘I’m sure you can do it.’ ‘Not the back,’ Scully smirked at her and Stella feigned a sigh of annoyance. ‘All right.’ She pushed herself up into a standing position next to Dana, lightly grabbing the collar of her dress to pull it back along her arms. ‘This needs to go,’ she whispered intimately close to Scully’s ear. ‘Stella,’ Dana just said, and Stella smiled. ‘You asked.’

The dress fell away in a weightless whisper along Dana’s skin and Stella took a moment to fully observe Dana’s bikini. She was wearing a coral colored triangle bikini, with firm white straps framing her breasts before disappearing over her shoulders into a cross back. The bottoms were simple plain colored and Stella struggled to get past the contrast of the bikini on Dana’s skin. ‘Your skin looks amazing,’ she said softly, and Scully smiled at her handing her the sunscreen. ‘Make sure it stays that way,’ she said as Stella took the bottle from her. Stella gave her one last look before focusing on the task at hand. She sprayed Dana’s shoulders and rubbed it in, fingertips gliding softly across Scully’s slick skin. Stella had the urge to drop her lips to the line of Dana’s shoulder up to her neck, but they were in public, and she knew she shouldn’t. So she settled for just watching Dana, just allowing her to fill her vision and her heart as she spread sunscreen across Dana’s back. She sprayed some onto her hand and let it sneak under the bands of Dana’s bikini top. A tiny whimper escaped Dana’s lips and Stella couldn’t suppress a smile. Systematically but tenderly Stella worked to protect Dana’s exposed skin against the sun, stealing a touch here and there, making sure no edge or curve was missed. She let her fingers sneak along Dana’s side to catch the skin just under the fabric covering Dana’s breasts. Dana didn’t say anything but she leaned back, only a little, but enough for Stella to notice. She smiled and finished her task, handing the bottle back to Dana. ‘Here you go,’ she said softly, and Dana pursed her lips at their cheeky little game as she quickly sprayed her legs. ‘Thank you,’ she said sincerely. ‘You want me to do you?’ She realized her innuendo the second it left her mouth and a laugh burst from her lips, doubling her over in giddiness. ‘I mean…’ ‘No, thanks,’ Stella laughed with her, ‘I think I’ve got it covered. But if I need help I’ll let you know.’ ‘Please do,’ Scully confirmed, smiling, before turning towards the water. ‘I’m going in, please join me soon.’ Stella winked at her. ‘I will. Once I’m done watching.’

Stella sat back down as she watched Dana gather her courage and confidence for a moment. Scully turned away and set off towards the water, slightly swaying her hips and straightening her back for Stella’s eyes which she felt burn into the sunscreen-covered skin of her back. It felt good, it felt free, and the fact that they were here in public as a couple made her slightly nervous and giddy and that combination was actually freeing for Dana. She had wanted to kiss Stella there, on the pebbled beach, but now she wanted to wait until they were cooled off in the water so she hoped Stella wouldn’t take too long to join her. They didn’t do this often, but it felt incredibly intoxicating and good.

As Dana’s feet carried her across the beach into the water Stella decided she didn’t want to watch any more. Dana moved so gracefully, so invitingly between the many, many tourists that Stella couldn’t do anything but follow her into the water. She left her stuff on the beach, just hoping no one would steal anything, but she was a detective after all so she was sure she could figure it out should anyone get it into their heads to take something from them.

Following Dana was inevitable, and she quickly remembered to spray her own chest and shoulders as she pulled her dress over her head. Scully still had her back turned to her and was testing the water, slowly descending into the water. Stella quickly followed her, twisting her hair up into a bun as she went. She lost sight of everyone else as she focused on Dana’s back and her hands which were carefully playing with the edge of the water, testing it, seducing it with her fingertips. Stella walked in the water behind her, the muscles in her feet and legs protesting lightly at the icy cool sensation running up her body through her spine. Scully was in to her thighs and Stella watched as she tensed her shoulders before sinking down into the sea, the tips of her hair dispersing and playing around her in the water. Scully turned and spotted Stella, raising her hand out of the water to wave at her. ‘Come on, it’s wonderful,’ she called and Stella smiled as she waded towards her, finding a depth that allowed her to swim before gracefully diving under and swimming quickly to where Dana was waiting for her. ‘Well,’ Scully smiled as Stella emerged beside her, wiping the water from her face as she took a breath. ‘That caught some attention.’ Stella looked behind her and saw a few eyes on her, some people turning back, others observing them curiously. ‘Let them look,’ Stella said, studying Dana’s face.

They lived in their own world for a few seconds, just observing each other, allowing the water to cool their bodies and free their souls as the sun warmed their skin and hearts. ‘Kiss me,’ Scully said softly, testing her courage. Stella pushed herself closer and waited, observing the people swimming and playing around them. ‘You sure?’

‘Yes,’ Scully said bravely, finding Stella’s elbow and pulling her closer. ‘Kiss me.’

Stella smiled at her, searching her eyes, seeing nothing but love and feeling it infect her own braveness. She raised her hand to Dana’s cheek and pulled her in lightly, but Dana had other plans and wrapped her legs around Stella’s body immediately. Stella smiled at her eagerness and attacked her lips with force, letting her know that she felt exactly the same. Stella felt Dana’s lips warm beneath her, her arms and legs cold around her and her entire being just floating around them. Scully kissed her back just as desperately, sneaking her tongue between Stella’s sweetly salty lips for a moment before smiling softly into Stella’s mouth. Their kiss ended lightly and Scully found Stella’s eyes again, looking up at her as she found her own space again in the sea next to Stella. ‘That was nice,’ Stella said as she turned her face and looked out across the water. Scully smiled to herself and just nodded before dipping her head below the water to cool down further. ‘Let’s do that again sometime,’ she said on a smile towards Stella before heading off to swim away from her, wanting to tease her a little.

Stella turned to watch Dana’s body fluidly move away from her and felt her skin tingle from the tips of her toes to the ends of her fingers. ‘Let’s,’ she confirmed, and set off to follow Dana, smiling foolishly, but unable to stop.


	2. Chapter 2

The water surrounding them was filled with people, kids playing, adults sunbathing on donuts or unicorns and some actual swimmers, but somehow Stella only saw Dana. The air was fresh and warm, the water clear and soothing to her overheated skin and the woman in front of her was making her want to chase her, not only through the whispering waves, but to the ends of this earth if she had to and it was making her feel elated and free without consequence or doubt.

She loved the beach and the sea, she always had, and she’d been swimming in the sea more times than she could count in her life but this was by far the best time she’d ever had. Dana splashed her feet lightly on the surface as she swam, turning onto her back to watch if Stella was there and Stella just smiled at her, her face open and happy. ‘Where are you going?’ Stella called to Dana, who seemed to be swimming with purpose. ‘Quieter area,’ Scully called back. ‘There’s too many people here.’ ‘It’s Brighton Beach,’ Stella called back, ‘of course there’s people here.’ Scully stopped and waited for Stella to come closer. ‘But I want to kiss you again, and I don’t necessarily want everyone to see it,’ she said as soon as Stella had caught up. Stella raised her chin and watched as Dana winked and resumed her path. Stella groaned – if she’d been unable to stay away before, she sure as hell wouldn’t let Dana get away now. So she followed her, and accepted that she now had someone in her life she deemed sensible and trustworthy enough to lead. It had been a while and her heart felt rusty following someone else’s footsteps – or waves, in this case – but it remembered its steps and it knew without a doubt that it wanted to go where Dana was going. Following Dana was easy, easier than she’d feared it would be and it made Stella happy to know that she was still capable of trusting someone like this.

Not wanting to get too deep into her own maze of a brain Stella ducked her head under water to rid herself of her thoughts, wanting to think of nothing but the kiss Dana had just promised her as she followed her to a part a bit further from the pier where there were a lot less people in the water. Scully stopped and floated on her back as Stella got closer and found her footing as she came to a halt. The water was just shallow enough to allow her to stand with her shoulders just above the waterline and Scully watched as Stella looked her over as she was still afloat. Stella’s hand came up on Dana’s back and she allowed Stella to support her, leaning her head back into the water. ‘I’m going to hate washing my hair later,’ Scully muttered, letting her gaze wander across the tangled strands that had escaped her bun to play around Stella’s face. ‘I’ll help you,’ Stella offered and smiled at her. Stella’s arm came around to Dana’s tummy and Stella watched mesmerized by the reaction of Dana’s skin to her touch as goosebumps rose across the path of her fingers towards Dana’s bikini top. ‘Stand, Dana,’ she commanded softly but sternly and Dana let herself sink under water, away from Stella’s touch before standing up close to her. Their bodies almost touched, the tiniest of spaces left between them and both of them felt the undeniable sparkle of life and love hiss between them. Stella’s hands rose to stroke Dana’s hair back from her face, revealing her perfect jawline and cheekbones to her before tenderly stroking her thumb along the skin she found there. ‘You’ll wipe away my sun screen,’ Dana teased, a smile playing along her lips. Stella descended her mouth onto that smile, kissing it away, stealing it for safekeeping to give back to her when she would need it again on less happy days. Dana responded sweetly, kissing her back, wasting to time to lavish Stella’s lips with her tongue to demand entrance.

Dana breathed into Stella’s mouth, giving her life, giving her hope as Dana let all of her love float towards Stella on the wave of her kiss. Stella received it openly, kissing her back with force, loving the fact that Dana really didn’t seem to care who saw them or who was even looking. Their kiss lasted longer than the first one, both of them lost to the feelings they created in each other and in themselves for a few minutes as their bodies melted into each other and their lips made love in the blazing summer heat.

Dana felt Stella’s hand travel down her back to tease under the waistband of her bikini before cupping her ass under water. She herself wanted nothing more than to touch Stella, but she had never done such a thing before out in public and something was holding her back, and she felt slight discomfort rise in her belly. She gently broke the kiss and placed a gentle peck on Stella’s lips before finding her eyes. ‘Save that for later,’ she whispered, and Stella raised a knowing eyebrow. ‘I will,’ she said, and her hand found Dana’s under the water. They clasped their hands together like they’d done a thousand times before and the familiarity of it struck Stella as even more evidence of how right this was. ‘Let’s head back to the towels, I want to watch you read,’ Stella suggested on a reserved smile and Scully returned it, her eyes saying sorry before nodding and following Stella’s lead back to the shoreline. As they got out of the water Scully released Stella’s hand to walk a few steps behind her and just watch how Stella’s body sauntered back to their towels. Stella’s simple white bikini was nothing short of perfect and Dana loved the contrast of Stella’s slightly tanned skin against the pure white fabric. Such a bold choice, she thought, even though she knew Stella didn’t really care about who saw what. Scully let herself look at Stella’s ass for a few steps before catching up to her and curling her hand around the small of Stella’s back for a moment before finding her hand again.

Stella looked over at her before looking back ahead, and Dana felt more seen and appreciated than anyone had ever made her feel. It wasn’t just a look, she knew. Stella Gibson had known damn well that she’d been checking her out, and that look was one of acceptance. Stella didn’t let just anyone get away with this kind of intimacy towards her. Scully knew she often felt trapped or threatened by it, especially out in public, but she also knew that their relationship had been cemented around their hands holding each other since the very beginning. Stella’s fingers felt warm and soft curled around hers and Dana squeezed her hand softly, letting Stella know that she saw her and appreciated her. ‘I’ll do your back again,’ Stella said softly and Dana didn’t miss the slightly hoarse, deeply relaxed undertone to Stella’s silky voice. She nodded and as they reached their towels Dana dug out the bottle and turned her back towards Stella who, without words but with steady breaths along Dana’s shoulders, expertly reapplied the oily sunscreen all along Dana’s spine, shoulders and down her sensitive sides. Scully shivered at Stella’s attention and when finally Stella stopped and handed her the bottle all she could do was smile appreciatively back at her. Stella sat down on the towel and released her hair, struggling slightly to get the salty strands freed from the tie that had been holding them together. She shook her head lightly, dispersing the curls along her shoulders as she shifted to get comfortable. Scully lay down on her stomach and watched Stella’s elaborate dance as she found an acceptable position. Stella finally settled on her back, one hand to her side, the other sprawled above her head. She peeked over at Dana. ‘What?’

‘I didn’t bring my book,’ Dana chuckled. ‘You wanted to watch me read but I didn’t bring my book.’ ‘Right,’ Stella said, and Scully almost laughed out loud as Stella sat up again to rummage through her bag. ‘But I did,’ she said triumphantly as she held up the book Scully had chosen from Stella’s collection to start reading yesterday. Scully shook her head and took the book from Stella, opening it to the page number she’d memorized.

‘Is it good?’ Stella asked after about ten minutes. ‘It’s your book,’ Scully replied dryly, keeping her eyes on the page. ‘Yes, is it good?’ Stella repeated. She’d seen Scully’s eyes shift back and forth and she’d observed the slight flush that had adorned Dana’s chest before fading away again and she had the growing suspicion that Dana wasn’t reading at all, she was just using it as a cover to openly fantasize about other things. It had been fascinating to watch, until Stella’s own mind had started asking questions about Dana’s fantasies and now she couldn’t stop, needing to know what was going on in that oh so proper, but oh so feral brain of the blushing redhead next to her. ‘I like it,’ Scully replied vaguely, raising her eyes from the page to look at Stella.

When she did, she knew she had been caught by the look on Stella’s face – open, raw and filled with something brewing just beneath the surface – it probably mirrored exactly what Stella would see on hers. She bit her lip and challenged Stella, looking her in the eye to allow the moment to fill them both. ‘It’s not what I expected,’ Dana said, ‘but I’m open to it and I’m starting to like it.’ ‘Hmm,’ Stella hummed, knowing she could and would easily win the staring contest Dana had started. She pushed herself onto her side, leaning her head on one hand as she continued to regard Dana, who broke their stare on a smile and directed her eyes back to the page. Stella contemplated her next words for a few moments, not wanting to make Dana uncomfortable, but knowing that there was probably barely anything she could say that would upset Dana. Still waters, Stella reminded herself. They ran deep.

‘I wasn’t going to have sex with you back in the water,’ Stella took a chance and leaned her chin in close to Scully’s ear. ‘But I was going to show you just how fucking hot I think you look.’ Scully felt the heat rise further onto her cheeks at Stella’s blunt words and she couldn’t help how her eyes quickly checked their surroundings for any eavesdroppers. She found none and let the naughty smile that was building up inside of her to take over her lips as she turned her face towards Stella. She leaned in and captured Stella’s lips unexpectedly, softly grazing her teeth over them in something that wasn’t a kiss, but was closer to a nibble and also the hottest thing Stella had ever seen her do. ‘I kind of wanted you to start it,’ Scully admitted on a whisper, her voice low and seductive. ‘I may even have let you finish it.’

Stella leaned back, her brain taking a few seconds to catch up to Dana’s words as her eyes had trouble focusing on anything but the images she saw behind her eyelids every time she blinked. She caught Dana’s piercing gaze, the shift of blue in her infinitely deep orbs and the tiny curve of her lips upward, challenging her, teasing her until Dana again couldn’t take it anymore and her tongue came out to lick her lips. Stella stayed silent and just put her head back in her hand, curling one stray strand of hair back behind her ear and continued to watch Dana pretend to read as the story unfolded itself before her like theatre on the muscles of Dana’s face.


End file.
